


On Through the Night

by last_illusions (injured_eternity)



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Episode Tag, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-11-15
Updated: 2009-11-16
Packaged: 2017-10-17 08:45:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 756
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/175035
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/injured_eternity/pseuds/last_illusions
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>They've been at it for three hours by the time Hotch finally calls it a night. Post-ep for 5x05, "Cradle to Grave".</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

They’ve been at it for three hours by the time Hotch finally calls it a night. Sighing, Morgan slumps back in his chair, trying to convince his shoulders to move away from his ears.

“So this is what you do when we're not in the field?” he asks wryly.

“Essentially.”

Morgan shakes his head, drawing a hand down his face. “Do you ever _sleep_?”

“Fifth Sunday of every month,” Hotch deadpans, and the younger agent huffs out a laugh, thinking it’s no wonder his boss always looks tired. He’s not so naïve as to have thought Hotch had no more work than the rest of them, but he’s also not sure how the man’s not years behind, either.

“Are you sure this is necessary?” he asks after a moment.

Neither of them have moved, and it occurs to Morgan that he can’t remember the last time he so much as spoke to Hotch outside the job—this is the closest they’ve come in… months, and they’re still _in the office_. None of them have had the time or the inclination to even grab drinks after work, but he wonders when they started drifting. Hotch got divorced, JJ had Henry… and somewhere in there they’d lost some of their social connections with each other. He can’t help wondering if finding them again will keep his boss from doing something rash.

“You’ll be fine, Derek.”

The answer breaks him from his thoughts, and he looks up; Hotch’s expression is reassuring and knowing all at once, but while he knows he’s been taught well, he’s not sure this is the place for him to be applying it.

Sighing again, he shakes his head. “I hope you’re right, Hotch.”

His boss—no, not really anymore—smiles slightly. “I’m pretty sure I am.”

There’s an undertone there that Morgan can’t quite put his finger on, and it makes him uneasy even though he can’t for the life of him explain why.

“You just want a break from all this, don’t you?” he asks instead, gesturing at the open boxes and settling for flip. (He knows better than to call the other man on something for which he has no evidence.)

Hotch laughs—actually laughs. “You caught me.”

Grinning back, Morgan drops a handful of folders into a box. “It’s my job, isn’t it?”


	2. Chapter 2

Pushing away from his desk, Hotch stands, the corners of his eyes crinkling with quiet amusement. “Go home,” he suggests finally. “Just assume you’ll be in late for the next few days.”

“I’ll be here,” he answers with a nod and stands to haul two of the boxes back into the corner.

Then he stops in the doorway, a hand braced against the frame. “You’re sure about this.” It’s a statement, not a question, and though he knows he’s pushing it, it still feels… almost irresponsible not to.

Pausing in the middle of sliding folders into his bag, Hotch sighs and straightens, turning to face his agent. “I’m stepping back, Derek, not walking away,” he points out yet again. There’s steely resolve in his voice, but no anger or impatience. “This team will be more effective if we’re not being checked at every turn. They’ll have an eye to you for the first few weeks at most, and then we’ll be able to just go back to work.”

 _At least you didn’t say “normal”_.

Slinging his bag over his shoulder, Hotch gestures for Morgan to precede him out, pausing to flip off the light and pull the door shut. Instead of waiting, the younger agent steps down into the bullpen, shutting down his desk and grabbing his things.

“It’s the best thing for the team, and you know this,” he continues, stopping by the desk, and Morgan sighs, nodding at the door.

“Yeah,” he says after a moment, as they’re waiting for the elevator. “Okay.”

 _It just feels wrong_.

He can’t help feeling a bit like he’s stepping on Hotch’s toes; it’s ridiculous, he knows, because the man made the offer himself, but that makes it no easier to simply take it and run.

On the ride down, Hotch makes a comment about the case, and he nods and responds even though later on he’s not actually sure what he says. He says good night and turns to walk to his car, and then the other man stops him.

“Derek.”

He turns back mid-step and stops walking. “Yeah.”

A pause; then, “Thank you.”

He waits just a beat, then nods. “You’re welcome, Aaron.”

 

 _Finis._

 _Feedback is always welcome._


End file.
